Our diamond session took place on October 25, 2012, and included
seven presentations (see the list of participants and topics below), with a
discussant. The panel formed after
chair Betty Belanus posted an inquiry on Publore, seeking to organize a Diamond
Session. After a discussion via
email, the group decided to use "creating spaces of possibility” as an overall
theme. Although the presentations
covered a wide spectrum of topics, including festivals and other public programs, material culture studies, and web site development,
this theme worked well to pull the session together and stimulated an
interesting discussion, which the participants would like to continue with
fellow folklorists.

The term "spaces of possibility" has been used by
education researchers, spiritual advisors, game designers, and feng shui
experts, among others. In an interview with Libyan-American poet Khaled Mattawa,
the term "[creating] a space of possibility" was used to describe the
imaginative "space" Libyan writers created to help their fellow
artists and countrymen express their feelings during and after the fall of
Gaddafi in 2011. Participants of this diamond session found that the term has
great potential as a useful tool in analyzing a wide range of work in public
sector and academic folklore. Each
of the presentations illustrated how folklorists work with community members,
folk artists, festival participants, web developers and others to create
"spaces”–literal or figurative–which invite interaction, foster better
understanding, open new worlds, and expand dialogue between groups.

Following discussant Gregory Hansen's comments, a lively
discussion ensued. In addition to
discussing how each of the presentations illustrated the theme "spaces of
possibility,” Gregory's comments prompted a fruitful discussion about Diamond
Sessions in general. It was agreed
that this type of session works well at AFS meetings, but that a theme, even
one as encompassing as ours, should be an organizing principle.

Following the session, some of the participants agreed that
they would like to record and post their presentations, with the dual hopes of
showing how versatile and interesting this type of presentation can be, and
stimulating a continued dialogue around the theme of "spaces of
possibility.” The AFS web site,
thus, can become a new "space of possibility” to broaden the discussion.

Jon Kay, Traditional Arts Indiana, the most tech savvy among
us, offers his presentation "The Walking Sticks of John Schoolman: Creating a Space for Interaction.” You can watch the presentation via YouTube or through downloading this version from Archives.org.

Due to sensitive material, photo permission issues, and time
restraints, not all of the participants will be able to post their
presentations, but we hope in the next month or so, three to four more of the
presentations will follow.